Yet Price is far from alone. Plenty of other Trump administration officials, not least Trump himself, have been lining their pockets with perks – if not cash outright. It now seems that more government appointees have been riding high on the public dime: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke all face similar allegations.

This abuse of the public’s trust – and resources – is outrageous and enraging, but pretty skimpy compared to the right’s years-long raiding and dismantling of public services to the benefit of private profiteers.

This long grift now culminates in the tax and budget plans GOP lawmakers want to rush through Congress. These plans amount to a corporate and billionaire-class plunder of our public resources – and the services they fund: health care, education, housing, and our basic infrastructure.

Here’s a little more about what’s in the GOP’s tax and budget plans, and how to stop this raiding of the public’s treasury and trust, just like we’ve blocked three bills to repeal health care.

A Tax Plan For Plutocrats

Last Tuesday, GOP leaders announced a plan to slash taxes for corporations and the rich. If you’re clearing about $700,000 a year – and aren’t one of the wealthy who cares about the common good – you can greet this scheme as good news.

For the rest of us, it’s awful news. It means Medicare, Medicaid, and many other services are on the line. Plus, under this scheme, taxes will go up for many families that are just scraping by while the rich benefit.

Removes the alternative minimum tax, allowing the rich to deduct their way out of their tax contribution

Eliminates the inheritance tax on estates valued at $5.5 million (or $11 million for a married couple)

Lowers the tax rate for businesses like law firms, hedge funds, and real estate development firms

What We Know So Far

Republican leaders in Congress want to push their corporate-billionaire tax cuts through using the budget reconciliation process. Under this scheme, the House and Senate would each pass budget instructions that clear the path for the plutocrat tax plan by mowing down our essential services.

Notably, not included in any of these proposals is a requirement that Medicare negotiate prices with drug corporations, which would yield savings for the public – but would also cut into the investments of multi-millionaires like former Health Secretary Tom Price.

Don’t Be Shy

The right wing has been explicit and aggressive in its agenda to make our country more racially and economically unequal. This agenda pushes people away from the ballot box, out of the doctor’s office, and off the spreadsheets that make up our public budgets.

That’s their big grift.

Those of us who believe in political and economic democracy should be explicit, too. We expect corporations and the rich to contribute adequately to the common good.

On Wednesday, October 4, People’s Action member organizations and many other grassroots groups will be holding public actions to demand that this budget be rejected. You can take action today by calling your representative in the House at (888) 516-5820 and tell them to vote no on the House budget.

Republican leaders are hurtling toward a repeal vote that will shred health care as we know it. It’s the most heartless bid to repeal care we’ve seen so far. That’s the bad news. The good news is we can stop them, if we act now.

GOP leaders want to defund, break and eliminate as much of our health care system as they can before the tide turns. They’re worried that in the long run, we will win, and we will. But to win, we have to keep fighting.